Gaming machines, such as slot machines, video poker machines and the like, have been a cornerstone of the gaming industry for several years. Generally, the popularity of such machines with players is dependent on the likelihood (or perceived likelihood) of winning money at the machine and the intrinsic entertainment value of the machine relative to other available gaming options. Where the available gaming options include a number of competing machines and the expectation of winning on each machine is roughly the same (or believed to be the same), players are most likely to be attracted to the most entertaining and exciting of the machines. Shrewd operators consequently strive to employ the most entertaining and exciting machines available because such machines attract frequent and extended play and hence increase profitability to the operator. Accordingly, in the competitive gaming machine industry, there is a continuing need for gaming machine manufacturers to produce new types of games, or enhancements to existing games, which will attract frequent and extended play by enhancing the entertainment value and excitement associated with the game.
U.S. application Publication No. U.S. 2003/0064800 A1 to Jackson et al. (“Jackson et al.”) notes that games displayed by video gaming machines are becoming increasingly complex. In an effort to provide a video gaming machine that is more easily understood by a player and yet provides all the features and excitement as any modem gaming machine, Jackson et al. proposes a video gaming machine with pop-up windows. Touching various icons on a touch screen video display, such as the symbols on simulated reels, pay line identifiers, and other icons, causes an associated pop-up window or other overlay to be generated. The overlay highlights or explains the selected feature. Jackson et al. asserts that such overlays reduce clutter on the display, can be graphically intensive to avoid the use of text, can be easily understood, can be quickly and logically accessed, and may even include animation. Jackson et al., however, is generally limited to the passive use of overlays for obtaining information about a selected feature so that the selected feature can be understood by the player.
Another U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/731,941 to Englman et al., entitled “Gaming Machine Having An Enhanced Game Play Scheme”, discloses a gaming machine, where in response to receipt of a second wager to select an option for enhanced game play, a player is provided with enhanced game play. Enhanced game play includes enhancing an existing aspect of the wagering base game. The option is for enhanced game play is preferably offered only to a player who has placed a maximum bet for the game (e.g., the player has selected the maximum number of pay lines and the maximum allowable credits per pay line). The gaming machine can be configured with either a video main display or an electromechanical main display (e.g., electromechanical spinning reels) with superimposed video images thereon provided by a flat panel transmissive display positioned in front of the electromechanical main display.
Gaming machines in the art have bonus games that player plays upon achieving a certain outcome in a basic game. However, achieving the requisite outcome to earn bonus game play is typically very difficult and the player can experience a stretch of game play during which no bonus game play is awarded. Consequently, the player may lose interest in playing on such machines. Also, even if the player is awarded bonus game play, the potential payouts are not large enough to maintain the player's enthusiasm for those particular gaming machines. The present invention is directed toward satisfying this and other needs.